PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID OMAHA NE PERMIT NO. 389
A publication of the Eastern Nebraska Office on Aging
New Horizons Omaha’s Cajun music connection Celebrating 50 Years
By Leo Adam Biga hen the chill Prairie Gators light into their Cajun fusion tunes expect audiences to step lively to the uptempo, high-pitched, accordion-led beats. These mostly home-grown cats are the only Nebraska band specializing in this distinctive French Louisiana style. Their social media tagline says it all: “Omaha’s Cajun music connection.” Co-founder, accordionist, lead vocalist and Master Gator Steve Kunasek long admired the music from afar. “I was a habitué at the Howard Street Tavern. I appreciated music, especially Americana, blues, Cajun, Zydeco, bluegrass, old-time country music. Stuff like that.” Because the pull of roots music was so strong, he taught himself to play the mountain dulcimer but didn’t perform publicly.
June 2025 | Vol. 50 | No. 6
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SAVORING THE CAJUN EXPERIENCE The premier Cajun band Beau Soleil and renowned Zydeco artist
NEW HORIZONS PHOTO Clifton Chenier made an impression during Omaha stops. He was already into Cajun when he met his future wife, Candy Blanchard, a New Orleans native of Cajun descent. Her ancestors were among the French-Nova Scotia refugees to settle along the Bayou. In the late ‘90s he experienced an epiphany on his first visit to Cajun’s birthplace, South Louisiana. With Candy’s kin
and their down-home ways he fell fully under the spell of that culture and state of mind rooted in heritage and hospitality. “Well, it’s hard not to,” he said. “It’s in the United States but it’s a special deal. I mean, really – the language, the food, the architecture, the climate, the wildlife, the music, of course. It’s a special place.” As for the infectiously buoy-
ant melodies, he said, “I just took to it. I like music that moves.” He absorbed the sounds and traditions, teaching himself to play the diatonic button accordion used in Cajon music. Years before he taught himself to play an old German accordion. Though nearly 40 when he came to the Cajun model, he dedicated himself to being a student of the instrument and the music. “I have an aptitude and I just kept at it.” Mastering anything comes with repetition and Kunasek’s practicing happened in the basement of his South Omaha home. Gators guitarist and banjo player Mark Richardson joined him Sunday afternoons. “It was like a sacred time for me,” said Richardson. Kunasek soaked up as much Cajun, Creole and Zydeco as he could find. “Listened and listened and listened,” he said. He wore out a CD of Zydeco artist Queen Ida. The more serious he got he immersed himself in the heart of Cajun --Gators continued on page 8.
2025 ENOA’s Spirit of Aging Awards
This year, as part of its celebration of Older Americans Month, the Eastern Nebraska Office on Aging has presented its fifth annual Spirit of Aging Awards. Winners were selected in the Advocacy, Medical/Healthcare, Donor, and Volunteer categories. See article on page 13.
Thanks to each of the winners from the Eastern Nebraska Office on Aging, its staff, and the men and women the agency serves in Douglas, Sarpy, Dodge, Cass, and Washington counties.
ADVOCACY
Jane Harpster
Notre Dame Housing
MEDICAL/HEALTHCARE
Creighton University Department of Physical Therapy
DONOR
The Furniture Project
VOLUNTEER Don Halsey
Long-term Care Ombudsman and Meals on Wheels volunteer